Headquartered in Ballineen, Co Cork, the Carbery Group is owned by four Irish co-operatives, Bandon, Barryroe, Drinagh and Lisavaird.

It began as a way for dairy farmers to add value to their milk but, today, Carbery products are exported to more than 50 markets around the world. The company employs 900 people in eight countries through 12 manufacturing and commercial operations across Europe, the Americas and Asia.

It still produces award-winning cheeses, including mature and vintage varieties along with a range of specialised, functional cheese, reduced-fat cheese and inclusion cheese. In 2020, the company invested €78m in its cheese-making facility to diversify its product portfolio and began producing Pasta Filata cheese including mozzarella and grilling cheese.

On the nutrition side, Carbery pioneered innovation in whey protein for sports and infant nutrition and is now also focused on clinical nutrition and health and wellness, where they develop clinically proven ingredients to meet the functional and nutritional requirements of today’s consumers.

The company also has a taste division, under the brand name Synergy Flavours, and is a leading supplier of flavours, extracts and essences.

Carbery has always been an innovator. They became one of the world’s first processors to install ultra filtration technology to produce whey protein concentrates. Carbery was also the first commercial plant in the world to produce ethanol from milk (lactose) and to license the process and technology worldwide.

For decades, the company’s innovation team has collaborated with universities and nutrition experts to develop science-based whey protein ingredients. They have more than 100 employees dedicated to research and new product development globally.

Carbery’s flavours team is celebrating the inclusion of its new hops essence in a new product launch in the States for a major beer brand.

Alongside growing the company, Carbery’s focus is on operating a sustainable business. They recently secured €2m in funding for a Farm Zero C project to develop a climate neutral, economically viable dairy farm.

Carbery chief executive Jason Hawkins said they were delighted to be selected as a finalist for Cork International Company of the Year.

“Everything we have achieved as a company is a testament to the contribution of all our employees around the world, and to the support and investment of our farmer shareholders over many years,” he said.

“We are proud of our roots in West Cork, our sustainable, cooperative ethos, and very proud of our role as a global employer. We look forward to showcasing the breadth of what Carbery has to offer. Thanks to Cork Chamber for the opportunity to do this.”

Dell helped customers transition to remote working during Covid

Technology giant Dell has a long history with Ireland and Cork that dates back more than three decades.

Today, the company has approximately 5,000 team members working in global and regional functions in Cork, Limerick, and Dublin.

While synonymous in its early years for PC and IT device manufacturing, the company’s portfolio has expanded significantly in recent years to encompass client devices, servers, data storage, data protection, networking, cloud, and cybersecurity.

Working with its customers, Dell helps them modernise their IT infrastructure to stay competitive, securely access cloud environments, enable work from anywhere, and create new value with data-driven insights.

Dell’s manufacturing operations at its Cork site opened in 1988 for customers across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and beyond and employed just 44 team members. Over the last 35 years, that number has grown to more than 2,500 employees today.

The past two years through the Covid-19 pandemic have seen some of the most significant shifts in work practices the world has ever seen.

During that time, Dell and its operations in Cork has been a partner to its customers, suppliers, healthcare providers, educators, and charities to help them to pivot to work from home and learn from anywhere.

Dell provided the equipment and shared skills to keep organisations productive. Last September, it launched a ‘Digital Futures in Healthcare’ course, which has developed in partnership with the HSE. This course was created to help Irish healthcare workers and leaders to develop many sought-after digital skills and has seen 1,400 people sign up so far.

The impact of Covid-19 disproportionately impacted the female workforce.

This year, to make positive inroads Dell launched a Women ReBoot programme targeted at females looking to return to the workplace. Training in professional skills, technical refresh, and applied work was completed by all and 60 candidates gained employment with Dell.

Dell has also invested in the future of Cork by working closely with the further education institutes to ensure that students are job-ready with in-demand skills.

It partners with both University College Cork and Munster Technological University each year on internship opportunities in a variety of areas within the Cork campuses and run transition-year programmes supporting local Cork schools.

Vice president and Cork site leader at Dell Technologies Bob Savage said: “We are honoured to be shortlisted for the Cork Company of the Year 2022 award by the Cork Chamber and would like to congratulate all the nominees.

“With advancements in new technologies continuing to accelerate, we’re committed as a company to unlock innovation for our customers both in Ireland and across the globe to support their digital transformation journey.”

Watson Marlow positions itself for further global growth

From their premises on Cork’s New Mallow Rd, Watson Marlow Fluid Technology Solutions supports some of the world’s largest companies across a range of sectors.

The firm is a world leader in pumps and associated fluid path technologies. This includes pumps, tubing, and fully integrated filling machinery.

For over 60 years, the group has engineered components and systems for customers in the food processing and handling, pharmaceutical, medtech, chemical, water, and industrial markets.

Its fluid solutions are also used in Ireland’s fast-growing biopharma sector, where Watson-Marlow pumps sit at the heart of vaccine and personalised medicine production.

The company is a global organisation with offices in 44 countries, employing 1,750 people, and is part of Spirax-Sarco Engineering, a FTSE 100 company.

Watson-Marlow has had a presence in Cork for five years.

As a headquarters for the European biopharma market, with more than 85 leading biotech and pharma companies, Ireland plays an important role in driving the development of innovative science and medicine.

The Watson-Marlow group has recognised Cork’s key strategic position to support this growing sector.

They recently invested €1m to expand the company’s facilities in Cork for its growing team of 19 staff. Their facilities include a Class 7 cleanroom, certified to meet the requirements of the highly regulated pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical, and food and beverage sectors.

The team in Cork offers local expertise, customer support and supplies of vital bioprocess equipment.

The company has seen sustained increased demand in recent years, averaging 34% over the last three years. Watson Marlow in Cork is also the company’s global biopharma training hub, where they welcome colleagues from across the globe.

By investing in Cork, the company said it is helping to build an ecosystem that attracts the best talent, supports the growth of other businesses and creates high value jobs.

“Our team loves their city and want to help support its success, through financial investment, job creation and through an ongoing commitment to the wider community.”

Graham Doyle, General Manager, Watson-Marlow Ireland said: “We are absolutely delighted to be named finalists in the International Category of the Cork Company of the Year Awards.”

“With the recent investment and expansion in both our people and site, our long-term commitment to Cork as our base in Ireland is clear for all to see.

“With Ireland widely recognised as the headquarters for the European biopharma market, our Cork operation has a big role to play as we focus on providing customers with complete solutions to meet their fluid path needs.

“This is fantastic recognition for our incredible team here and across the company as we work to engineer a more efficient, safer and sustainable world.”